I am blessed to count myself among those who have benefitted from the generous hospitality of Sierra Sky Lodge.
On my way here, sometime after 9pm, I pulled over to call Wendy, the owner. She was a gem. She was happy to hear I was okay (she knew I was on a motorcycle) and fine with me not getting in until after 10pm. She also mentioned she was praying for no deer. Which moves a motorcycle mama's heart.
When I arrived here 10:30pm, she was there to meet me in the driveway. I was a tired, aching wreck, and I asked if my room had a tub or if the motel had a hot tub. She said no, but she would let me use a tub in an unoccupied room if I wanted. Then she told me there was only one other couple staying here that night, and they didn't want breakfast, so she would just bring it straight to my room in the morning, and what time would I like it? I wanted to kiss her for her kindness. When I got to my adorable, cabiney room, it was faintly illuminated by Christmas lights, and a much-needed warmth greeted me when I entered. There are no phones here, certainly no cell reception (with AT&T, anyway), and spotty wireless if you sit right next to the office (which turns out to be the pool area, which is perfect, or the breakfast room, which is cozy). You check in here, you check out of everything else.
When I made this reservation, I really had no idea what I was doing. I found it on Yelp, and it seemed like a sweet family-run, country motel, way up in the mountains, and it was on my route. I don't know why I was impelled to reserve this for four nights; I just did it. And I didn't know how therapeutic it would be to have unlimited moments for thinking and not-thinking. I am so, so grateful I made this reservation.
The thing I love the most here is the air. It is intensely aromatic with the smells of mountain life. At daybreak, the clean, promising fragrance of greenness, and as the day warms, the heady scent of hot pine needles in the sun. In the evening, when I look up, I am surrounded by towering ponderosas that hover over me like powerful bishops, and beyond them, a cathedral ceiling of stars. I am instantly right-sized.
Wendy brought me breakfast two days in a row, because I was the only guest having breakfast. (The breakfast spread here is righteous, by the way - homemade, fresh, and lots of protein.) On the second day, she lingered a little, and we got to chat. She told me the story of how she and her husband Wayne came to own this place nine years ago, and how today, they have five beautiful children, three scraggly but affectionate cats, and three good dogs.
If you want something fancy, please don't come here - you'll ruin it for the rest of us, who see generosity of spirit as a priceless commodity. read more